Qualicum Beach town council will reconsider their July 9 decision to drop a contract for stone veneer work at the Memorial Golf Course clubhouse — but not for two months.
Wednesday morning at a special meeting, council voted unanimously to push any reconsideration of awarding an $18,880 contract to Sneddon Masonry to their Oct. 15 committee of the whole meeting. The matter was resurrected by mayor Teunis Westbroek, who received a request by the golf club to do so. On July 9, council voted not to proceed with the work, with councillors citing cost. Westbroek said the golf club board asked him to bring the matter back to council, adding he had 30 days to do so.
“We did lead (the golf club) to believe that we’d have this done prior to their anniversary in 2012,” added councillor Mary Brouilette. “If the golf club wants this done now, they could pay for it, or (the town) could advance the cash.”
Those options, however, did not proceed.
“I feel this is an issue that shouldn’t be here,” said coun. Bill Luchtmeijer, saying it should be discussed at a regular public meeting.
He also added Westbroek’s introduction of this reconsideration is on an issue that council “never considered” in the first place.
Westbroek countered that indeed council did, at their July 9 meeting. Coun. Scott Tanner and the town’s own agenda minutes online confirmed this.
Coun. Dave Willie agreed the matter should go before the public.
“That’s my disappointment,” he said. “There’s no reason for this and it should have been done at the next meeting.”
The next meeting (Aug. 13), Westbroek pointed out, would have fallen past the 30-day time frame in the town’s community charter, during which a motion that council has dealt with, can be reconsidered.
Tanner added to reconsider the issue, it must receive unanimous assent.
That it did, with council voting on Brouilette’s motion to do so in October.
“Yes, I know it’s a financial issue,” Brouilette noted, directing the comment at Luchtmeijer and Willie, “but it’s part of the town’s financial plan to look at our priorities in October.”
